Music Writing Meme: Gibson
by Fastern
Summary: Gibson-centric Drabbles // Twelve drabbles, all focused on the Hyperforce's resident smart guy. A Writer's Meme drawing origins from DeviantArt.


_**A/N: **I'm baaaaaaaaacckk!_

_Technical difficulties, combined with Writer's Block, combined with an overall lack of interest in SRMTHG for the last little while, have delayed me. Luckily most of these issues have been resolved. For those watching out for an update in "Silk Road," you should see the next chapter sometime in the next two weeks. I apologize for making you wait for almost a month, but I have a life beyond this website...No offense._

_Ah-CHEM. Anyways, I did a Music Meme for Transformers: Animated and decided to do one for SRMTHG, as well. I chose Gibson has my focus because he is one of my favourite characters, and sorely neglected by the fandom. Mostly. Well, I hardly see any GOOD stories centering around him, so I can only assume he's neglected._

_I think._

_It's thanks to this meme that my CD collection is now alphabetized..._

_Annnnd I just realized that this is my twentieth story!_

_Alright, it isn't actually that exciting, but hey, number 20 in the first three months I've been here isn't too bad! ;)_

_Anyways..._

**The Rules Are:**

**1. Pick a character, fandom, pairing, friendship, whatever.**

**2. Put on your music program on shuffle/random and start playing songs. **

**3. For each song, write something inspired by the song related to the theme you chose earlier. You only have the song length. No pre-planning and no writing after the song is over. No skipping songs either.** (_You should all be thankful. I cheated for my TFA version of this meme. I didn't cheat on this one. Except for the pre-planning thing.)_

**4. Do 10** _(I did twelve.) _**songs and post. Make sure to include the song name/artist.**

* * *

**I Need You to Love Me – BarlowGirl**

Gibson frowned at the calculations.

They were terrible reminders. He remembered what happened during the explosion. He remembered uncovering his mistake. He remembered suddenly becoming aware of how it could've been prevented, how the experiment could've been successful. How it would not have killed.

The doors slid open. A stray beam of light crawled up to the desk. A shadow hesitated there, the weary silhouette. They entered.

'Gibson?'

He didn't respond.

The owner of the voice pulled up a stool. He didn't look into her eyes.

'Gibson...We were never mad about what happened. I wasn't -'

He broke. Allowing the tears to run down. Allowing himself to be pulled into Nova's gentle embrace.

**Apathetic Way To Be – Relient K**

'Skeleton King has the power to kill us all and you aren't going to do anything about it?!' shouted Sprx. 'Doesn't it mean anything to you?! We're all gonna die!' Sprx threw a wade of paper at the scientist, hitting him between the eyes. Gibson crossed his arms. 'And you're gonna hide away and not do anything about it?!'

'I've given up,' announced Gibson.

The rest of the Hyperforce's jaws dropped.

'I'm simply not concerned,' said Gibson. 'We're all going to end up dying anyways! What's the point of fighting anymore? It's illogical to fight a war we can't win!'

He stormed from the room. Sprx muttered a few good curses, while Otto and Nova exchanged thoroughly confused looks. Chiro made to go after Gibson. Antauri took him by the wrist.

'He does care,' Antauri said. 'Just give him some space.'

**Where'd You Go? – Fort Minor**

Gibson left the common room, where he last spotted Nova comforting Otto. Sprx brushed by him, fleeing to his Fist Rocket. No doubt to grieve away from the prying eyes of the others. He, however, had work to do.

At first he felt guilty. Looking for Chiro on a vast map of the Savage Lands, when he should be mourning like the rest. Lamenting at the loss of a great comrade. His best friend...Why couldn't he feel anything? Why couldn't he just let loose for once, like Sprx was always telling him to do so? Why couldn't he really approach the others and openly display his pure anguish at what happened?

He continued working. Anything to keep him thinking from Antauri.

They had watched him die, and done nothing to stop him.

Antauri couldn't be dead! He'd been one of the few things keeping this team together. He wanted Antauri to come home, not head to the afterlife, if such a foolish phenomena existed in the first place. He hated waiting for news of Chiro. They'd probably want him to make a speech at Antauri's memorial service, after they got Chiro back.

Had it really only been an hour since he started his work? It felt like forever. He wasn't sure if he was going to get through this.

He wanted Antauri to stop pretending he was dead, to come back and fix everything.

**Wake – Linkin Park**

Gibson awoke to foggy voices. Sprx was the most prominent, big surprise. Screaming something about revenge. He didn't know; he didn't particularly care the the moment.

Something came back to him. The attack. He remembered feeling something...

Someone was crying.

Gibson reemerged in the Med Bay. The team was crowded around the metal table, where he'd so often performed medical examinations. Chiro looked somewhere between sad and furious, Sprx and Nova beyond that. Otto's eyes were wide. Antauri appeared distressed.

Then he spotted a blue heep of fur and metallic parts. He looked down, to find that he had no body.

'Oh, shoot.'

**Saturday – Hedley**

Otto peered inside of the laboratory. Gibson heard him coming from afar, crying out about it being a "free day" and how he wanted everyone going down to the lake. It was extremely warm out, not that he'd noticed. (Thank goodness for air conditioning.)

'C'mon, Gibson!' exclaimed Otto. 'It's Saturday! Let's head down to the lake!'

'Why?' asked Gibson, turning in his seat. 'I have work to do. Skeleton King doesn't –'

'C'mon! Please?'

'Otto...'

'Let's goof off and forget Skeleton King,' said Otto. He approached him with a wide grin. 'It's another Saturday, and we're free! Why don't we just have some fun for once?'

Gibson rolled his eyes. 'I hate it when you tempt me with things like this.'

'Yes!' Otto grabbed his wrist and dragged him from the laboratory.

'I didn't say I'd go!' Gibson protested.

Not that it made a difference in the first place.

**Different Kind of Free – ZOEGirl**

He was 97% sure that the others were dead.

Gibson couldn't see out of the cell. Two inches water curled around his feet, already scrapped up. Smooth, rocky walls. The only light came from the circular hole above, bars across it. His prison. He wouldn't be able to escape, with the jet pack inoperable. This must be what a wild animal feels like. An animal without logic or the sheer brain capacity to crave escape. But he wasn't like that. He'd find a way. After all, he'd been the only one not swayed.

They'd been brainwashed, he must not blame them. It was wrong to claim that they were at fault here.

He wondered what would happen if he fast-forwarded to whatever would happen next. Perhaps he'd be standing above his own corpse in a waste pile. Joining his comrades, if Skeleton King had not already decided to kill them.

How could he have missed that their erratic behaviour was that of brainwashing? Tried to help them?

He had a free mind. They were free, yes. But they weren't free in their minds. Skeleton King couldn't taken away his mind.

Gibson looked up at the sound of footsteps. This may be his only chance to get out...And hopefully the 3% had given the others the chance of escaping their own mental boundries. THis was one time when he hoped he was mistaken.

**What If – Simple Plan**

'No! No – No! It was all my doing! It was my plan! Don't hurt them, I beg of you!'

Gibson hated looking like a fool in front of Mandarin, Skeleton King, and his own team. But it was true. It had been his mistake. No doubt the decision to take all the blame for this incident, under torturous questioning, would give the others the chance they needed. His choice would change the war. Everything about it. His friends' futures.

'Gibson, don't,' Antauri mouthed.

Nova covered her mouth.

Sprx grabbed her hand, eyes wide.

Otto closed his eyes.

Chiro shook his head.

They believed they couldn't go on without him. Gibson knew better. They'd be alright, get over it, and after they won, everything would be alright. Their "What ifs" wouldn't matter.

He'd wait for them in whatever was beyond death.

A death Gibson hoped would be worth it, in the end. This was their only change to win the war once and for all. He'd pave the road for them. Pave the road to peace. But that didn't really matter, in the end. In the end, he'd die for a good cause, for his friends. He was just another sacrifice.

Skeleton King loomed over him. Mandarin cackled in the background. Gibson bowed his head, preparing for the final blow.

**Let It Be – Superchick**

Gibson had never quite felt _this _amount of rage at one individual. He crunched up the cruel drawing he'd found in his pod, depicting his long-winding, brain-straining speeches. Why had the Verans allowed Sprx onto this team in the first place?

'You look angry,' said Mandarin.

'That...That..._chimp_!' Gibson growled. 'Do you see this drawing?'

He tossed it over. Mandarin crumpled it and examined it closely, apparently holding back a laugh.

'It's amusing,' he grinned.

'Sometimes I just want to – !'

'Let it be, Gibson,' said Mandarin. He put his feet up on the computer console, staring up at the television screens depicting various simultaneous programs. 'If Sprx is teasing you because of who you are, then it's own fault that he can't appreciate who you are as a person. Or, you can think of it this way: instead of seeking vengence, let it be. Laugh with him...It _is_ an amusing drawing.'

Gibson snatched back the clumsy illustration. Sarcastically: _'Thank you_ for your observations, oh mighty leader.'

Mandarin chuckled.

**Twenty-Four – Switchfoot**

Why was he even trying to save Sprx? Their fights, the rare moments when they'd gotten along, all meaningless. Why was he even worried about stopping the epidemic from spreading beyond the super Robot?

He didn't care. Twenty-four hours to find a cure to it. He wasn't infected, he'd survive and somehow live to continue his work. His work was all that mattered. Give him a reason to care about Mandarin and the others! They hadn't gotten along from the start! It didn't matter to him. He didn't want to be stranded on this planet for any longer.

That is what he would've been thinking had this happened twenty-four hours earlier.

Gibson injected Sprx. Though the red monkey kept an annoyed expression, it also showed inward thanks. He moved on to the others. The symptoms would pass.

'Nicely done, Mr. Gibson,' said Mandarin following his injection. 'We owe you our lives.'

That's when he knew he wanted to stay.

**The Last Night – Skillet**

He was a scientist, not a therapist.

But Gibson couldn't ignore it.

'I'm fine. Don't worry about me. I'm fi – fine.'

'That's a lie!' Gibson shouted. Sprx didn't seem to register it. He scrambled up to him and grabbed his shoulders. 'Don't lie to me like that! You haven't been acting the same ever since what happened with the Fire of Hate! This is _NOT_ your fault!'

'No, no,' Sprx shook his head.

Gibson pulled him closer. When they'd first met, he had never imagined himself comforting Sprx. _Hugging_ him, of all things.

Sprx burst into tears. Gibson rocked him gently, feeling just as distressed. But this would be the last night Sprx would spend alone in his room, ignoring the world. Lost in his grief. He needed help, be it handled by a therapist or a scientist. Gibson wasn't going to let go until he knew his friend would be alright.

**I Don't Believe It – Hedley**

Mandarin had slapped him. Pointed out his mistakes in front of the others. Yelled at him. Belittled him. Obvious, really. It had been obvious that something was wrong with Mandarin. Gibson hadn't hesitated to believe Antauri's claims that Mandarin needed to be dealt with.

He had actually looked surprised when he hadn't joined him.

Though outwardly staying loyal and firm in their mutiny, Gibson didn't believe that this was happening. He didn't _want_ to believe that his once-friend was betraying their cause. But theirjob would be easier as soon as Mandarin stepped aside.

Gibson felt like he was in the wrong body, when he shook his head at their former leader...and stood beside their true one.

**Welcome to the Black Parade – My Chemical Romance**

A week after Chiro had died, a week after Shuggazoom had gone into a state of complete misery, Gibson went to the hilltop. He could see the funeral from here. The rest of the Hyperforce were present, even Antauri.

Antauri. No matter what he claimed, he wasn't in any condition to attend the funeral of their leader. Chiro had become his son, in a sense.

Gibson knew he couldn't go. Made some excuse about work, stayed within the confines of his room, and his friends instantly understood. Gibson had waited until they were gone. Then come here. Just to glimpse it.

It was too nice a day for a funeral.

Gibson sat in the grass, pulling at the blades.

Skeleton King was still a threat. Antauri had so often confided in him how Chiro would be the key to ending the conflict. Ending it all. Saving Shuggazoom and, subsequently, the universe. It was official, then. They were all gonna die.

Gibson looked up at some footsteps. Antauri, flanked by Sprx, Otto, and Nova. The funeral must've ended.

'I thought you had work to do,' Antauri said.

He shrugged and tugged at the grass. The others sat beside him.

'Well, do you think we can win, _now_?' asked Gibson.

'I don't care if we win or not,' said Sprx. 'Skeleton King's gonna pay!'

The others muttered their agreement.

_Yes_, thought Gibson. _We'll carry on._

* * *

**Explanations:**

**1. I Need You to Love Me - Barlow Girl: **Pretty much self-explanatory. Gibson caused an accident which killed one or more members of the Hyperforce. I won't say who; leave it up to your imagination! I suppose this can be viewed as Gibova.

**2. Apathetic Way to Be - Relient K: **I've always had the impression that Gibson wasn't nuts about having to fight against Skeleton King, like it's illogical or something. He's far too smart to not know that war is the only way to resolve conflicts. I know this song doesn't exactly give off this message, but I'm just going by the title and a few of the lines. It also happens to be one of my favourite artists. I'm only missing a single CD from my collection...I'm totally digressing, here.

**3. Where'd You Go? - Fort Minor: **Strictly speaking, I'm not that into rap songs. I fail to remember why I got their CD to begin with, but nonetheless it is there, and I do have to use it. It is an excellent "sad song," which immediately brought up the image of Gibson's reaction to Antauri's death...Does anyone else realize that Sprx and Gibson walked off screen, so we didn't see how they _actually_coped with Antauri's apparent demise? It's a free plot bunny. I'd like to see what other people have in mind.

**4. Wake - Linkin Park:** This composition doesn't have any lyrics. "Wake" was the only writing prompt I got here. I decided to kill Gibson. Big surprise.

**5. Saturday - Heldey:** Very silly, but fun to write.

**6. Different Kind of Free - ZOEGirl:** Goodness, I didn't know I still had the CD that this was on, and only now do I remember how much I love it. Though the song is religious in nature, I decided to only use a few lines as writing prompts. With all due respect. I was acting in the interest of those who _aren't_ religious by not mentioning the theme.

**7. What If - Simple Plan:** Gibson's going to die again. Well, maybe he doesn't die. I _did_ cut it off right at the end, so the outcome of the situation is up to you.

**8. Let It Be - Superchick: **In my twisted mind, Gibson and Mandarin once got along quite well with one another. Other beliefs shown in this drabble is that Mandarin was very relaxed in those times; like there was no war. Or, more likely, they were going to _win_it and live the rest of their lives in luxury. Ironically enough, Mandarin would be more of a peacekeeper then Antauri presently is. And then...well, you get the picture. I love Mandarin and I love Gibson.

**9. Twenty-Four - Switchfoot:** Okay, it's a long story, but I'll try to sum it all up in a few sentences. (If you've read the Hyperforce's entry in "the Little Things," you should understand what I'm talking about.) The Hyperforce didn't get along in their early were a lot of disagreements and conflict in their relationships, especially between Gibson and Sprx. I figured it'd either take a noble cause to keep them together or something catastophic happening. Perhaps an epidemic was the event in question, forcing the Hyperforce to work together to find a cure. Gibson would make it in the end with his chemistry...stuff.

**10. The Last Night - Skillet:** Sprx goes angsty over what happened in the series finale. Gibson comforts him, despite their opposite personalities. Self-explanatory.

**11. I Don't Believe It - ****Hedley: **The "true leader" is Antauri. If Mandarin was really loosing it, he'd go pretty hard on the rest of the team. A lot of pressure - I imagine - would be put on Gibson, because the most is expected of him. The others expect him to be correct in all his experiments and theories. Yet despite the pressure, Gibson would be like everyone else. He'd look up to Mandarin and be reluctant to believe that he betrayed them.

**12. Welcome to the Black Parade - My Chemical Romance:** Yes, I did it. I killed Chiro.

**That's all for now. Please review and tell me what you think!**


End file.
